“Can Corporations Help Stem Violence Against Women?”

This article from Betwa Sharma examines the UN’s latest efforts to enlist businesses in the effort to end violence against women.

“The U.N. is now trying to harness the power of the corporate sector to help combat violence against women. Some businesses already take actions such as distributing awareness-raising materials to employees and customers, but there is a push for the private sector to put its resources into community-based organizations.

“There are only a handful of companies in this area, including Johnson & Johnson and Avon. Experts, however, point out the lack of incentive for CEOs, especially men, to pick this platform to fulfill their corporate social responsibility.

“Apart from the advertising and entertainment industry, which has been very supportive, it has been quite difficult to get corporates to address violence against women,” said Mallika Dutt, who heads the human rights organization Breakthrough, based in the U.S. and India.”